Land Rover Freelander Stalling Mystery Needs Diagnosis

I had a similar issue with my 2008 Land Rover Discovery 3 (gas engine) last year. The symptoms were exactly like yours, unusual stalling and starting problems. Turns out it was related to a third-party ECU tune that went wrong. Got it checked at a garage that specializes in Land Rovers. The diagnostic revealed corrupted ECU coding, which was messing with the fuel mapping and ignition timing. They had to completely remove the aftermarket tune and reflash the ECU with the original factory settings. The fix wasn't quick, took them two days because they had to deal with some persistent coding issues. It was pretty serious since faulty coding can potentially damage engine components if left unchecked. Since the fix, my Discovery has been running smoothly with no more stalling issues. My suggestion: get it checked by someone who specifically knows Land Rover electronics and ECU systems. These symptoms usually point to either coding issues or fuel system problems, and you'll want someone who can properly diagnose the difference.

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience! You've definitely helped point me in the right direction. Quick question, do you remember roughly how much you ended up paying for the ECU reflash? Also, has everything stayed running smoothly since then, or have you noticed any other quirks pop up? Asking because I want to get an idea of what I might be looking at cost-wise and whether I should expect any follow-up issues with my Freelander. Cheers!

Hey there! Thanks for asking about the costs and follow-up. Yeah, I got it sorted at the garage and the total came to 180.00 € for fixing that dodgy third-party chip tuning. Honestly, it was worth every penny because my Discovery has been running like a dream since then. The mechanic really knew their stuff and properly diagnosed that coding fault. The best part is I haven't had a single problem since the repair, no more unusual stalling, no starting issues, nothing! It's been super reliable. Turns out the faulty coding was the only problem, and once they cleared that up and got the ECU back to factory settings, everything fell into place. I know Freelanders can be a bit different, but if your symptoms are similar to what I experienced, you're probably looking at a comparable fix. Just make sure you get someone who really knows their way around Land Rover electronics, it makes all the difference! Let me know how it goes with yours. Always happy to help a fellow Land Rover owner out!

Thanks for all the details, really appreciate you breaking down the costs and sharing your long-term experience! Well, I bit the bullet and took my Freelander to a specialist mechanic yesterday. Turns out you were spot on, it was definitely a coding issue, but in my case, it was a corrupted sensor signal that was confusing the ECU. The fix was actually cheaper than I expected, came in at 150.00 € including diagnostics. The mechanic was super thorough and even showed me what was causing the problem. Got my car back today, and wow, what a difference! The engine runs smoother than it has in ages, and that annoying stalling problem is completely gone. Really glad I asked here first instead of just taking it to any unusual garage. You saved me from potentially wasting time and money at places that might not have known how to handle these specific issues. Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction, feels great to have my trusty Freelander back to normal!